GE.18-02467(E)

Economic Commission for Europe

Inland Transport Committee

Working Party on Customs Questions affecting Transport

148th session

Geneva, 6–9 February 2018

Report of the Working Party on Customs Questions affecting Transport on its 148th session

Contents

Paragraphs Page

I. Attendance............................................................................................................... 1 3

II. Adoption of the agenda (agenda item 1) ................................................................. 2 3

III. Opening statement ................................................................................................... 3 3

IV. Election of officers (agenda item 2) ........................................................................ 4 3

IV. Activities of United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE)

bodies and other United Nations organizations of interest to the Working Party

(agenda item 3) ........................................................................................................ 5 4

VI. Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods under Cover

of TIR Carnets (TIR Convention, 1975) (agenda item 4) ....................................... 6–36 4

A. Status of the Convention ................................................................................. 6–7 4

B. Revision of the Convention ............................................................................ 8–27 5

1. Amendment proposals to the Convention .............................................. 8-11 5

2. Preparation of Phase III of the TIR revision process .............................. 12–17 6

3. Financial aspects of computerization of the TIR procedure ................... 18 7

4. Draft Annex 11 to the TIR Convention .................................................. 19–27 8

C. Application of the Convention ........................................................................ 28–36 10

1. New developments in the application of the Convention ....................... 28 10

2. Issues transmitted by the Administrative Committee ............................. 29–30 10

United Nations ECE/TRANS/WP.30/296

Economic and Social Council Distr.: General

23 February 2018

Original: English

ECE/TRANS/WP.30/296

2

(a) The application of greater facilities in the Convention .................. 29 10

(b) The use of subcontractors in the Convention ................................. 30 10

3. TIR-related electronic data interchange systems .................................... 31 11

4. Settlement of claims for payments ......................................................... 32 11

5. Relation between the World Trade Organization Trade Facilitation

Agreement, the TIR Convention and other legal instruments ................ 33 11

6. IRU external audit report and related matters ........................................ 34 11

7. Other matters .......................................................................................... 35–36 11

VII. International Convention on the Harmonization of Frontier Controls of Goods, 1982

(“Harmonization Convention”) (agenda item 5) ..................................................... 37–38 12

A. Status of the Convention ................................................................................. 37 12

B. Issues in the application of the Convention .................................................... 38 13

VIII. International Convention to Facilitate the Crossing of Frontiers for Passengers

and Baggage carried by Rail, of 10 January 1952 (agenda item 6) ......................... 39–40 13

IX. Customs Conventions on the Temporary Importation of Private Road

Vehicles (1954) and Commercial Road Vehicles (1956) (agenda item 7) .............. 41–43 14

A. Status of the Convention ................................................................................. 41 14

B. Issues in the application of the 1954 Convention in Egypt and Jordan .......... 42–43 14

X. Activities of other organizations and countries of interest to the Working Party

(agenda item 8) ........................................................................................................ 44–45 15

A. European Union .............................................................................................. 44 15

B. Economic Cooperation Organization, Eurasian Economic Commission,

World Customs Organizations ........................................................................ 45 15

XI. Other business (agenda item 9) ............................................................................... 46–48 15

A. List of decisions .............................................................................................. 46 15

B. Dates of the next sessions ............................................................................... 47 15

C. Restriction on the distribution of documents .................................................. 48 15

XII. Adoption of the report (agenda item 10) ................................................................. 49 15

Annexes

I. Statement by Mr. Cristian Serban, Deputy General, Associatia Româna Pentru Transporturi

Rutiere Internationale (ARTRI) ....................................................................................................... 16

II. List of decisions taken at the 148th session of the Working Party ................................................... 17

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I. Attendance

1. The Working Party (WP.30) held its 148th session from 6–9 February 2018 in

Geneva. The session was attended by representatives of the following countries:

Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland,

France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iran (Islamic Republic of), Ireland, Italy,

Kuwait, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Russian

Federation, Serbia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the former Yugoslav Republic of

Macedonia, Turkey, Ukraine and Uzbekistan. Representatives of the European Union were

also present. The following non-governmental organizations were represented: Alliance

Internationale de Tourisme / Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (AIT/FIA), the

International Road Transport Union (IRU).

II. Adoption of the agenda (agenda item 1)

Documentation: ECE/TRANS/WP.30/295 and Corr.1

2. WP.30 adopted the provisional agenda, prepared by the secretariat

(ECE/TRANS/WP.30/295 and Corr.1).

III. Opening statement

3. In his opening statement, Mr. Li Yuwei, Director of the UNECE Sustainable

Transport Division, informed the Working Party that he had assumed his post as of 5

February 2018. Although new to UNECE, he was certainly familiar with the topics of the

Working Party such as, but not limited to, the TIR Convention. In fact, he had worked

together with some of the colleagues as far back as 18 years ago. He looked forward to

becoming more familiar with all the topics of the Working Party. From his briefing, two

issues clearly dominate the Working Party’s agenda for now: finalizing a last set of

amendment proposals and the ongoing efforts towards computerizing the TIR procedure,

specifically the finalization and adoption of the legal framework as contained in draft

Annex 11. He extended a warm welcome to the delegation of Kuwait which was

participating for the first time as a Contracting Party to WP.30. He expressed the hope that

its presence and the possibility to exchange views with delegations from other Contracting

Parties would contribute to increasing the implementation of the TIR system on the territory

of Kuwait and the region. He referred to the ongoing efforts to finalize and adopt a new

Convention on the facilitation of border crossing procedures for passengers, luggage and

load-luggage carried in international traffic by rail and urged the Working Party, by

recalling a personal experience with travelling in Asia, to agree on the draft expediently. He

welcomed the tabling of a final text proposal to the Working Party. At the same time, he

cautioned against speed or pressure when considering the further pursue of this matter.

Finally, he welcomed the ongoing efforts to expand the number of Contracting Parties to

the TIR Convention, which, with the recent accession of the State of Palestine and Qatar

now stood at 73. Various delegations congratulated Mr. Li on his appointment and wished

him success in his work.

IV. Election of officers (agenda item 2)

4. In accordance with the Commission’s rules and procedures and established practice,

the Working Party elected Mr. R. Kristiansson (Sweden) as Chair and Mr. A. Fedorov

(Ukraine) as Vice-Chair for its sessions in 2018.

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V. Activities of United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) bodies and other United Nations organizations of interest to the Working Party (agenda item 3)

5. The Working Party was informed about activities of the Inland Transport Committee

(ITC), its Bureau, subsidiary bodies and other United Nations organizations. In particular,

the Working Party took note of the eightieth session of ITC (20–23 February 2018, Geneva)

and of the invitations to the Chair and Vice-Chair. The Working Party took note that this

year’s policy segment would be on the role of intermodality as one of the cornerstones of

sustainable mobility and transport at both the international and city levels. At the meeting

for government delegates only (with the participation of the Chairs of the Committee’s

subsidiary bodies), the Committee will be invited (a) to consider the ITC strategy up to

2030 and express its views on priority areas, and (b) to provide guidance to the secretariat

on further developing the ITC strategy in an action plan and a road map for

implementation. Both would be for adoption at the Committee’s eighty-first annual session

in 2019.

VI. Customs Convention on the International Transport of Goods under Cover of TIR Carnets (TIR Convention, 1975) (agenda item 4)

A. Status of the Convention

6. The Working Party was informed that, on 3 November 2017, the Secretary-General

of the United Nations, acting in his capacity as depositary, issued the following depositary

notifications: (a) C.N.698.2017.TREATIES-XI.A.16, informing of the submission of

various proposals to amend the body of the TIR Convention, 1975. In accordance with the

provisions of Article 59 (3) of the Convention, the amendments shall enter into force on 3

February 2019, unless an objection has been communicated to the Secretary-General not

later than by 3 November 2018; (b) C.N.699.2017.TREATIES-XI.A.16, informing of the

submission of a proposal to amend Article 2 of the TIR Convention, 1975. In accordance

with the provisions of Article 59 (3) of the Convention, the amendment shall enter into

force on 3 February 2019, unless an objection has been communicated to the Secretary-

General not later than by 3 November 2018; (c) C.N.700.2017.TREATIES-XI.A.16,

informing of the submission of various proposals to amend Annexes 6, 8 and 9 of the TIR

Convention, 1975. In accordance with the provisions of article 60 (1) of the Convention, the

Administrative Committee decided, at its sixty-sixth session (12 October 2017) that the

amendments should enter into force on 1 July 2018, unless, no later than 30 March 2018,

five States which are Contracting Party would have notified the Secretary-General of their

objection. The Working Party took note that the Secretary-General of the United Nations,

acting in his capacity as depositary, has issued, on 2 January 2018, depositary notification

C.N.801.2017.TREATIES-XIA.16), informing that on 29 December 2017 the State of

Palestine has deposited its instruments of accession to the TIR Convention, 1975. In

accordance with its Article 53, paragraph 2, the Convention would enter into force for the

State of Palestine on 29 June 2018. Further, the Working Party took note that the Secretary-

General of the United Nations, acting in his capacity as depositary, has issued, on 26

January 2018, depositary notification C.N.52.2018.TREATIES-XI.A.16, informing that on

26 January 2018 Qatar has deposited its instruments of accession to the TIR Convention,

1975. In accordance with its Article 53, paragraph 2, the Convention would enter into force

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for Qatar on 25 July 2018. Finally, the Working Party welcomed the news that, on 28

November 2017, the TIR system had become active for the United Arab Emirates. With

this latest addition, the number of TIR operational countries was brought to 59. The

competent authorities authorized the Automobile & Touring Club of the United Arab

Emirates (ATCUAE) to act as TIR issuing and guaranteeing association for the United

Arab Emirates. Detailed information on this issue, as well as on depositary notifications is

available on the TIR website.

7. Under this agenda item, IRU informed the Working Party that Chinese customs

intended to open the first border crossing points for TIR transport before June 2018. The

delegation of the Russian Federation confirmed its readiness to conduct consultations with

the Chinese authorities on the approval of border crossings points to accomplish TIR

operations, in line with the provisions of Article 45 of the Convention. In addition, though

not common practice, it requested the secretariat to address an invitation letter to the

Chinese customs authorities, facilitating their presence at future sessions of the Working

Party and the TIR Administrative Committee (AC.2).

B. Revision of the Convention

1. Amendment proposals to the Convention

8. The Working Party continued its discussions on proposals to amend Article 20, as

contained in document ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2017/21. The delegation of the European

Union confirmed its wish to maintain the proposal to replace, in Article 20, the word

“country” by “Contracting Party”, and invited other delegations to support this proposal, as

it would not have any negative repercussions on the application of the provision in customs

unions that were not Contracting Party to the TIR Convention in their own right. The

delegation of Ukraine, while expressing support for the position of the European Union,

offered to prepare a comparison between the TIR Convention and other relevant

international legal instruments such as, in particular, the Revised Kyoto Convention or the

World Trade Organization Transit Facilitation Agreement (WTO-TFA). The delegation of

the Russian Federation advised the Working Party to apply caution to the various proposals,

which it regarded a complex matter. In addition, it stated that the application of Article 48

did not fully offer a solution for the situation of the Eurasian Economic Union. In

conclusion, the Working Party gladly accepted the offer of the delegation of Ukraine to

prepare a comparative document for consideration, if possible, at its next session. In

addition, delegations were invited to carefully study the various amendment proposals

contained in the Annex to document ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2017/21, and to provide the

secretariat with feedback, comments or further considerations no later than 1 April 2018.

9. The Working Party continued its previous discussions, on considerations by the

Government of the Russian Federation in developing a proposal to replace the word “limit”

in Explanatory Note 0.8.3 by “determine”, based on document ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/1

that summarized the discussions on the issue so far. The Working Party recalled that the

word “limit” in Explanatory Note 0.8.3. had been there from the beginning and that the

drafters, on purpose, must have decided not the repeat the word “determine” from the text

of Article 8, paragraph 3. In this context, the Working Party recalled the statement by the

delegation of Azerbaijan at its 147th session that “the competence of Contracting Parties to

determine the maximum amount per TIR Carnet was delineated by the text of Explanatory

Note 0.8.3 which recommends Contracting Parties to limit the maximum amount per TIR

Carnet which may be claimed from the guaranteeing association to a sum equal to $ 50,000

/ 60,000 euros” (ECE/TRANS/WP.30/294, para. 14). The delegation of the Russian

Federation confirmed that, in its view, aligning the texts of Article 8, paragraph 3 and of

Explanatory Note 0.8.3 was warranted to remove any ambiguity that could rise from the use

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of two different terms. The delegation of Uzbekistan expressed the view that it did not fully

agree with the statement that the guarantee sum depends on the exchange rate. In its view,

the amount largely depends on the sum of customs fees payable in case of a claim. While

addressing this issue, it seems appropriate to establish a more flexible mechanism. The

delegation of the European Union stated that, in its view, the difference in wording

introduced, on the one hand, a harmonized approach, whereas, on the other hand, it

provided Contracting Parties flexibility in the application of the recommended maximum

amount. The proposed amendment would take away the flexibility Contracting Parties have

and the European Union did not support such modification. The delegation of Belarus

proposed to assess whether it would not be possible to convert E.N. 0.8.3 into a comment of

similar wording. The delegation of Ireland reiterated that, in its view, the wording

“determine” in Article 8, paragraph 3 imposed a finite amount, whereas the words “limit to

a sum equal to” provided the desired flexibility. Unable to reach consensus, the Working

Party agreed to revert to the issue at the next session. Delegations were invited to (a) assess

if for Explanatory Note 0.8.3 a better term than “determine” could be found, (b) assess if a

conversion from Explanatory Note to comment would provide Contracting Parties

sufficient flexibility and (c) provide their comments to the secretariat no later than 1 April

2018.

10. The Working Party considered document ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/8, which

provides a succinct summary of the discussions so far on proposals to introduce a new

Article 11, paragraph 4 bis, as well as further clarifications by the delegation of the Russian

Federation. The delegation of the Russian Federation confirmed that the main aim of the

proposal was to give competent authorities and the national association the possibility to

conclude an agreement and provide for a longer deadline during which competent

authorities could address courts with claims against the national association, than stipulated

by national law. In case such possibility would become a provision of international law, it

would supersede any provision to that extent in national law. The Working Party recalled

that, at a previous session, the delegation of the European Union had suggested to the

Russian delegation that a conversion of Explanatory Note 0.11.4 into new Article 11,

paragraph 4 bis might perhaps solve the issue. The delegation of Azerbaijan had proposed,

in case a new Article 11, paragraph 4 bis would be adopted on the basis of a conversion of

Explanatory Note 0.11.4, to delete the first phrase.

11. The Working Party continued its discussions. In reply to the three questions by the

secretariat in the said document, the Working Party confirmed that the final phrase of

Explanatory Note 0.11.4 should remain with Article 11, paragraph 4. The delegation of the

Russian Federation stated that a conversion of Explanatory Note 0.11.4 to become new

Article 11, paragraph 4 bis would solve its problems with regard to the limited timeframe,

according to national law, to bring claims to the court, subject to some changes as contained

in its proposal. The Working Party noted that the issue of the consequences of the proposed

changes for the national agreements between customs authorities and national associations

warranted further assessment. The Working Party mandated the secretariat to prepare, for

consideration at its next session, a short document, outlining the rationale behind the

Russian proposal and the proposed text of Article 11, paragraph 4, its amended Explanatory

Note 0.11.4 and new Article 11, paragraph 4 bis.

2. Preparation of Phase III of the TIR revision process

12. The Working Party noted that following the signing of the Memorandum of

Understanding (MoU) between UNECE and IRU on 6 October 2017, standard conditions

for new TIR computerization projects were being prepared. The main objective is to move

towards full computerization of the TIR procedure. It also noted that Contracting Parties

were invited to express their willingness to join a TIR computerization project.

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Furthermore, the Working Party noted that recruitment of the information system officer

(P3) was ongoing and that the selected candidate was expected to start in the spring of

2018.

13. The Working Party noted the continuation of eTIR transports between Iran (Islamic

Republic of) and Turkey, and the continuing exchange of TIR transport data between

Georgia and Turkey.

14. The Working Party took note that the twenty-seventh session of Ad hoc Expert

Group on Conceptual and Technical Aspects of Computerization of the TIR Procedure

(GE.1) took place in Geneva on 4 and 5 December 2017. It further noted that GE.1 had

discussed a number of amendments to the eTIR specifications resulting from the pilot

projects and from the outcome of the work of the Group of Experts on the Legal Aspects of

Computerization of the TIR Procedure (GE.2). GE.1 made progress on a number of issues,

inter alia, the design of an accompanying document, the clarification of the sequence of

eTIR messages, the introduction of new guarantee status codes and the introduction of a

refusal to start message. The draft report of the twenty-seventh session had been uploaded

on the UNECE website and would be submitted as an official document for adoption at the

149th session of the Working Party. Subject to confirmation of the extension of the GE.1

mandate by ITC, the twenty-eighth session was scheduled for 28 and 29 June 2018.

15. The Working Party also took note that the secretariat would meet experts from the

European Commission on 20 February 2018 to compare the New Computerized Transit

System (NCTS) and eTIR messages, and that the secretariat would present the eTIR project

to the Electronic Customs Coordination Group of the European Union on 14 March 2018.

16. The Working Party was orally briefed by the Chair of GE.2 about the outcome of its

fifth session (30 and 31 October 2017, Geneva). The Chair highlighted that GE.2 had

concluded its two-year mandate by drafting proposals for the eTIR legal framework and

had approved its self-evaluation containing a consolidated summary of its outputs. In

addition, the Chair briefly presented the main amendments to the draft eTIR legal

framework stemming from that session. The Working Party endorsed the report of GE.2 at

its fifth and final session (ECE/TRANS/WP.30/GE.2/10 and Corr.1) and the self-evaluation

of GE.2 (ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/2), which demonstrated that GE.2 met all the

requirements of its Terms of Reference.

17. The Working Party was briefed about the latest developments in the International

TIR Databank (ITDB). It further took note that, at the occasion of its 149th session, the

secretariat would organize a seminar dedicated to the use of the ITDB.

3. Financial aspects of computerization of the TIR procedure

18. The Working Party recalled the information provided at its previous session on a

MoU1 and Contribution Agreement (CA) signed between UNECE and IRU. It requested the

secretariat to provide additional information on the matter and on the functioning of the

system at its next session. The Working Party also noted that as the CA is aimed at stating

matters mainly related to United Nations financial rules and conditions, the document was

restricted to the signatory parties. The Working Party further noted that Contracting Parties

that are interested in joining future TIR computerization projects would have to make the

required amendments to their customs Information and Communication Technology (ICT)

systems and, where necessary, finance those amendments but that no costs would be

charged for using the UNECE and IRU ICT systems. The secretariat clarified that the funds

1 www.unece.org/fileadmin/DAM/MoU___Cooperation_Agreement_IRU_UNECE_eTIR_6_

oct_2017_with_dates_no_signatures.pdf

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made available by means of the CA were mainly for developing new functionalities, upon

request by Contracting Parties, following an agile methodology. IRU confirmed its

readiness to amend the CA if more funds would be required to ensure the rapid

development and deployment of new functionalities requested by Contracting Parties

participating in the projects (see ECE/TRANS/WP.30/295, paras. 22–25). The Working

Party decided that it was of the greatest importance to continue discussing the financial

aspects of eTIR but agreed that this could be done within the framework of discussions on

Annex 11. On that assumption, the Working Party agreed that the issue would remain a

separate agenda item in future agendas.

4. Draft Annex 11 to the TIR Convention

19. The Working Party recalled that, at its previous session, it had considered document

ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2017/24, containing extensive proposals by GE.2 for a new draft

Annex 11 to the Convention, which establishes the eTIR legal framework.

20. In the context of its discussions, the Working Party took note that GE.2, at its fifth

session, had, inter alia, considered the detailed outcome of a survey on electronic

authentication mechanisms in TIR Contracting Parties that had been conducted in 2016-

2017 (see the summary in ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/3). The secretariat informed the

Working Party that the results of the survey had revealed that regulations in some

Contracting Parties had raised concern in terms of the access of foreign operators to the

eTIR procedure in those countries. The delegation of the Russian Federation confirmed the

survey findings, reiterating that all electronic declarations submitted to Russian customs

authorities needed a Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) electronic signature that was issued by

a domestic certification authority, and that these electronic signatures were not provided to

foreign operators. He reminded the Working Party of the request to GE.2 to further analyse

the concept of trusted third parties (TTPs) in the eTIR international system to verify the

validity of a signature issued by a foreign certification authority. The Working Party agreed

to further consider the application of TTPs at the next session of GE.1. The secretariat

invited the delegation of the Russian Federation to participate in these discussions,

particularly, with its experience in the regional framework agreement for paperless trade,

adopted in the framework of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia

and the Pacific (UNESCAP), envisaging reliance on TTP. The representative of IRU

proposed that either a TTP recognized by all Contracting Parties be appointed (in this case:

UNECE) or that Annex 11 stipulate that national representatives could sign on behalf of

authorized TIR Carnet holders according to national requirements.

21. The delegation of Ukraine raised the question whether GE.1 or GE.2 had taken into

consideration the fact that other documents are attached to the paper TIR Carnet and could

also be attached in the case of electronic advance cargo information. The secretariat

clarified that the issue had been considered by GE.1 and that various options to attached

documents to the advance cargo information had been included, inter alia, scanned copies,

XML files and links to electronic documents repositories. The secretariat further clarified

that it had contributed to the inclusion of such information in the World Customs

Organization (WCO) Data Model, which is used as a standard for all eTIR messages.

22. Concluding its discussions on the results of the survey, the Working Party decided to

continue its considerations when discussing Articles 6 and 7 of draft Annex 11.

23. The Working Party took note that the Office of Legal Affairs (OLA) – Treaty

Section had informed the secretariat that it would not be possible to introduce the opt-out

clause for Annex 11 by means of a reservation, as proposed in new Article 58, paragraph 1

bis, considering that the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (1969) only allows

reservations to legal instruments at the moment of accession and not later on. Taking this

into account, the secretariat informed the Working Party that it would submit a new

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proposal, stipulating that Annex 11 would come into force by a certain deadline for all

Contracting Parties, except for those that would notify the depositary, in writing, before that

same or another deadline of their non-acceptance of the Annex. Most likely, the proposal

would take the shape of amendments to the new Article 60 bis on the introduction and

amendment procedure for Annex 11. These proposals would not materially impact the

application of the provisions of Annex 11.

24. In this context, the delegation of the European Union proposed to review the

decision-making mechanism as contained in Article 4 of draft Annex 11, possibly in

combination with the introduction of a transitional period for Contracting Parties that (a)

would accept Annex 11, but (b) not apply eTIR in the first phase. It its view, it seemed not

correct to exclude this group of countries from the decision-making procedure as proposed

in said Article 4. In reply, the secretariat proposed to consider introducing a clear

differentiation between the moment a Contracting Party would accept Annex 11 and the

moment that it would start implementing the Annex.

25. The delegation of the Russian Federation questioned the authentication methods

proposed in document ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/4, as they did not comply with

requirements of its national legislation. Instead, it proposed that TTP’s could be used to

allow the usage of national electronic signatures across borders and indicated that such

technologies were envisaged to be implemented by the Framework Agreement on

Facilitation of Cross-border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific which was adopted at

the seventy-second session of UNESCAP as resolution E/ESCAP/RES/72/4. The secretariat

recalled that TTPs had been presented during meetings of GE.1 and GE.2 and that GE.1

considered, at that time, that the technology had not yet proven it could function. The

secretariat further mentioned that GE.1 was aware of the concerns raised by some

delegations on the mutual recognition of authentication methods, and continues to look into

alternatives. In this context, experts in the field of blockchain technology would be invited

to the twenty-eighth session of GE.1 to consider the possible application of these

technologies to eTIR. The delegation of the Russian Federation was also invited to send its

experts on TTPs to the next meeting of GE.1 to explain and present actual examples of the

application of TTPs in an international context.

26. The delegation of Italy stressed that the main issue on which the Working Party was

invited to express itself was the financing of the operational costs of the eTIR international

system and, in particular, whether such costs should be covered through an amount per TIR

transport or rather per eTIR transport. The delegation of Turkey, referring to the

longstanding commitment of all Contracting Parties to the TIR Convention to move to full

computerization of the TIR procedure, was of the view that all Contracting Parties should

support the operational costs of the eTIR international system and that, consequently, the

amount should be charged on all TIR and eTIR transports. The delegations of Belarus and

the Russian Federation wondered whether the issuance of electronic guarantees would alter

the roles of either the international organization or the national associations. The secretariat

recalled that eTIR had been developed with the clear instruction from Contracting Parties to

leave the principles and philosophy of the TIR Convention untouched. The delegation of

Turkey confirmed that during the pilot project between Iran (Islamic Republic of) and

Turkey, the roles of both entities had fully remained intact. The delegation of Italy

confirmed from its side that the functioning of the TIR Convention in a computerized

environment would not change the role of any of the stakeholders.

27. The delegation of the European Union stated that more clarity was required with

regard to the financing mechanism before the European Union and its member States could

accept Annex 11. In concluding the discussions at the current session, the Chair invited all

delegations to provide comments on or proposals to Annex 11 in general, and its financing

mechanism in particular, to the secretariat no later than 1 April 2018. With reference to the

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financial rules mentioned in Annex 11, Article 10, paragraph 3, the delegation of the

Russian Federation requested the secretariat to provide more information on the applicable

United Nations rules and regulations for extrabudgetary projects. The delegation of the

European Union requested the secretariat to also provide more information on the timeline

to be applied for the financing of the operational costs of the eTIR international system.

Finally, the secretariat was requested to prepare an amended version of Annex 11, in

particular, but not limited to, taking into account the considerations by OLA.

C. Application of the Convention

1. New developments in the application of the Convention

28. No new developments in the application of the Convention were reported under this

agenda item.

2. Issues transmitted by the Administrative Committee

(a) The application of greater facilities in the Convention

29. The Working Party considered document ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/5, containing

background information on the issue, as well as a number of examples of best practice of

the use of the concept of authorized consignor/consignee in various Contracting Parties.

The Working Party noted that TIR Carnet holders in various countries already benefitted

from the facilitations of authorized consignor or consignee, while noting, at the same time,

that the requirements and conditions differ from country to country. The delegation of the

European Union confirmed its provisional agreement with the proposals prepared by

TIRExB (see Part III of the document) and conveyed its willingness to continue sharing its

experiences with the concepts of authorized consignor/consignee with other Contracting

Parties. In its view, although there was broad consensus about the application of greater

facilities in the today’s world, it seemed that some Contracting Parties did not wish to go

along with this development. The delegations of France, Latvia, Poland, Turkey and

Ukraine shared their positive experience with the application of either or both concepts on

its territory and clarified the strict conditions and requirements that applied for authorized

TIR Carnet holders to be granted such facilitations under the application of the provisions

of national law. The delegation of the Russian Federation confirmed that it could not

support the proposals, considering that the absence of any evidence about the accuracy of

the checks applied or the requirement imposed on TIR Carnet holders created risks for

recipient countries. In addition, it felt that in order to accept the concepts, a clear

description of conditions and requirements for the application of greater facilities in the TIR

Convention would be required. It could only see any merit in the application of greater

facilities at the end of a TIR transport, as it did not affect the application of the TIR

Convention in other countries. The delegation of Belarus argued that any further

discussions should focus on drafting a new provision to the Convention, which would

address all aspects of the TIR procedure involved in the application of greater facilities. The

Working Party concluded that, in the absence of consensus on the proposal, it only seemed

feasible to make progress in the field of authorized consignee, while taking note that, in the

meantime, the described practices in various Contracting Parties would continue. The

Working Party decided to revert to the issue at its next session and invited delegations to

provide the secretariat with comments or proposals no later than 1 April 2018.

(b) The use of subcontractors in the Convention

30. To recommence discussions, the Working Party reviewed document

ECE/TRANS/WP.30/AC.2/2012/13 and noted the different points of view on the subject

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11

matter. The representative of Turkey expressed its willingness to further consider the

proposals in terms of practical consequences, including the need for a common

understanding of the concept of subcontractor, clarification of the requirements to use

vehicles, approved in accordance with the provisions of the TIR Convention if the

subcontractor is not a TIR Carnet holder, and the requirement of a clear provision that the

person directly liable would be the TIR Carnet holder. The representative of the national

association of Ukraine informed the Working Party that based on a recent Decree, it had

started permitting the use of authorized TIR Carnet holders as subcontractors. The

representative of IRU underlined the importance of the issue for intermodal transports and

requested the Working Party to work on a formulation that would not leave rail and

shipping companies out of scope, due to the increased application of intermodal TIR

transports. IRU also informed the Working Party that it had comprehensive information on

the use of subcontractors in various Contracting Parties and proposed to submit a document

for consideration of the Working Party at its next session. The Working Party welcomed the

proposal by IRU and decided to revert to the issue at its next session on the basis of the IRU

submission.

3. TIR-related electronic data interchange systems

31. The Working Party was informed by IRU about the latest statistical data on the

performance of Contracting Parties in the SafeTIR control system for TIR Carnets

(Informal document WP.30 (2018) No. 3). In this context, countries were invited to review

their current achievements and see if improvements in the transmission of SafeTIR data or

replies to reconciliation request could be achieved, where appropriate. The delegation of

Uzbekistan reported about problems in replying to reconciliation requests, due to the fact

that TIR transports with the destination of Afghanistan were often ended at the Afghan

border post without the appropriate messages sent to the SafeTIR control system. IRU

explained that the difficulties encountered were due to security restrictions in Afghanistan.

4. Settlement of claims for payments

32. The Working Party was informed by IRU about the current situation on the

settlement of claims for payments made by customs authorities against national

guaranteeing associations (Informal document WP.30 (2018) No. 4).

5. Relation between the World Trade Organization Trade Facilitation Agreement, the

TIR Convention and other legal instruments

33. No new developments were raised under this agenda item.

6. IRU external audit report and related matters

34. Under this agenda item, IRU informed the Working Party, in reply to a question

from the delegation of the Russian Federation on the status of the case lodged with the

Federal Prosecutor of Geneva, that no new information was available. Further to a request

of the delegation of the Russian Federation, the Working Party decided to leave the issue on

its agenda and to revert to it in the future when the occasion would arise.

7. Other matters

35. Under this agenda item, the Working Party considered Informal document WP.30

(2018) No. 2 by IRU, and took note that on 8 January 2018, the Romanian customs

authorities had authorized the National Union of Road Hauliers from Romania (UNTRR) to

act as TIR guaranteeing association in Romania, in accordance with the provisions of

Article 6, paragraph 2 and Annex 9, Part I. This development would ensure the

uninterrupted effective management of the international TIR guarantee system in Romania.

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12

The Working Party further took note that, on 14 November 2017, IRU had informed the

UNECE secretariat that, at a meeting of the IRU Presidential Executive meeting on 8

November 2017, the Presidential Executive had decided to exclude Associatia Româna

Pentru Transporturi Rutiere Internationale (ARTRI) from its membership. ARTRI had filed

an appeal with the IRU General Assembly, which would rule on this appeal at its meeting

on 4 May 2018. The Working Party further took note of Informal documents WP.30 (2018)

Nos. 5 and 6, containing letters by the Romanian customs authorities and ARTRI,

respectively. In their letter, the Romanian customs authorities reflected on the relation

between IRU and ARTRI and the course of actions taken as a consequence of the exclusion

of ARTRI by IRU. They proposed that TIRExB should study the possibility of drafting an

Explanatory Note to Article 6, paragraph 2 bis to address the termination of the written

agreements between the international organization and ARTRI. The delegations of the

Russian Federation, Uzbekistan and the European Union supported this proposal. In

addition, the delegation of the Russian Federation proposed to conduct an analysis of the

text of the Convention to see if amendments are warranted to rule out, for the future, any

possibility for IRU to take unilateral actions which would lead to the disruption of the

functioning of the Convention on the territory of any Contracting Party.

36. In its letter and oral statement during the session, ARTRI recapitulated the situation

of TIR Carnets issued by it until 31 January 2018. In particular, it reported on incidents

were ARTRI TIR Carnet holders were blocked at the borders of the Republic of Moldova,

the Russian Federation and Turkey. In addition, it challenged if IRU had provided customs

authorities with sufficient guidance on how to properly instruct their customs offices to deal

with the situation at hand. The delegation of Azerbaijan informed the Working Party that it

had not officially received information on how to treat TIR Carnets issued by ARTRI and

requested that such information be sent through official channels so that appropriate actions

could be taken. Various delegations informed that, despite clear instructions given, there

might have been some slight hesitations from some individual customs officers on how to

deal with the situation, but that the issue now seemed to have been settled. IRU confirmed

that three incidents had been reported, two of which had been resolved and one was

currently under investigation. From its side, the delegation of the European Union informed

the Working Party that over the past months it had been in close contact with all

stakeholders. With reference to Informal document WP.30 No.5 (2018) by the Romanian

customs authorities, she mentioned, in particular, that concerns had been raised with regard

to authorizing holders for the new association (UNTRR) as well as the transfer of ARTRI

members to UNTRR, but that, presently, the issue seemed to be under control.. In reply to a

question by the delegation of the Russian Federation about the legal grounds for the

exclusion of ARTRI, IRU replied that the decision was taken following defamatory

allegations by ARTRI against IRU. IRU confirmed that Romanian customs authorities had

decided to maintain both the guarantee agreements with ARTRI and UNTRR and that the

insurance certificate of ARTRI was valid until 31 January 2018. IRU also confirmed that

any claim addressed to either association would be treated with due care and to the

satisfaction of the Romanian customs authorities. At the request of ARTRI, the Working

Party agreed that its oral statement could be attached as Annex to the final report.

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VII. International Convention on the Harmonization of Frontier Controls of Goods, 1982 (“Harmonization Convention”) (agenda item 5)

A. Status of the Convention

37. The Working Party was informed that no changes in the status of the Convention or

the number of Contracting Parties had taken place. The Harmonization Convention has

fifty-eight Contracting Parties. More detailed information on this issue as well as on

depositary notifications is available on the TIR website. 2

B. Issues in the application of the Convention

38. The Working Party decided that a next session of the Administrative Committee of

the Harmonization Convention (AC.3) should be convened in conjunction with its 2019

June session and mandated the secretariat to make the necessary arrangements, including

the preparation of pre-, in- and post-session documents. Contracting Parties were invited to

provide input to the secretariat about issues they would want to be addressed at that session.

VIII. International Convention to Facilitate the Crossing of Frontiers for Passengers and Baggage carried by Rail, of 10 January 1952 (agenda item 6)

39. The Working Party expressed gratitude for and satisfaction with the work done by

the secretariat and the group of Experts. The Working Party considered documents

ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/6 containing the final text of the draft Convention, in

combination with document ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/6/Corr. 2, containing the following

two corrections to the text of Article 27, further to a final review by the United Nations

Office of Legal Affairs, Treaty Section (OLA-TS): (a) to change the deadline for an

amendment to enter into force from thirty days to three months, in order to achieve

alignment with the entry into force of the Convention for newly acceding States, as

stipulated by Article 22, paragraph 2; (b) to invert, for reasons of logic, the order of

paragraphs 3 and 4, which should then be renumbered accordingly. In the context of its

discussions, the Working Party took also note of document ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2018/7,

containing a set of final clauses, as prepared by the secretariat in close consultation with

OLA-TS.

40. Under this agenda item, the secretariat informed the Working Party about the

outcome of the discussions by the Working Party on Rail Transport (SC.2) at its seventy-

first session (November 2017). In particular, the Working Party took note that SC.2 had

asked WP.30 to take further steps towards finalizing the adoption of the draft convention

for the purpose of submitting it for approval to ITC (see ECE/TRANS/SC.2/228, paras. 33–

39). The delegations of Azerbaijan, Belarus, Iran (Islamic Republic of) and Uzbekistan

expressed their interest in the draft Convention and reported on the ongoing inter-agency

consultations that were currently taking place. The delegation of Azerbaijan was in favour

of keeping the issue on the agenda of the next sessions. The draft Convention was also

under consideration of the authorities of Turkey. The delegation of the European Union

2 www.unece.org/tir/tir-depositary_notification.html

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14

informed the Working Party that consultations on a Council decision about the position to

be taken on behalf of the European Union were ongoing. In its view, the absence of a clause

stipulating the possibility for Regional Economic Integration Organizations (REIO) to

accede to the new Convention constituted a problem for the European Union to agree on the

text. In conclusion of the agenda item, the Working Party invited the representatives of

interested countries to conclude their internal approval procedures and inform the

secretariat about any eventual comments no later than 1 April 2018, so that a final text of

the draft Convention could be considered as official document at the June 2018 session of

the Working Party. The delegations of Belarus and the Russian Federation requested the

secretariat to make arrangements so that SC.2 delegations would attend future sessions of

the Working Party as well as to extend invitations to interested countries from Asia,

including China and Mongolia, to participate in the discussions. The secretariat was also

requested to rephrase the title of the concerned agenda item to reflect that the issue refers to

the new draft Convention on the Facilitation of Border Crossing Procedures for Passengers,

Luggage and Load-Luggage carried in International Traffic by Rail rather than to the

International Convention to Facilitate the Crossing of Frontiers for Passengers and Baggage

carried by Rail, of 10 January 1952. Finally, the Working Party requested the Chair to duly

report to ITC at its forthcoming session on progress with the road map and the latest state of

play of the draft Convention.

IX. Customs Conventions on the Temporary Importation of Private Road Vehicles (1954) and Commercial Road Vehicles (1956) (agenda item 7)

A. Status of the Convention

41. The Working Party was informed that no changes had occurred in the status of the

Customs Conventions on the Temporary Importation of Private (1954) and Commercial

(1956) Road Vehicles and that the Conventions, currently had, 80 and 26 Contracting

Parties, respectively.

B. Issues in the application of the 1954 Convention in Egypt and Jordan

42. The Working Party recalled that, at its previous session, it took note of document

ECE/TRANS/WP.30/2017/27 about the ongoing issues in Egypt and Jordan in the

application of the 1954 Convention, particularly due to the fact that customs authorities did

not seem to respect the deadlines and procedures laid down in the Convention and that the

secretariat had sent official letters on 27 July 2017 to the Governments of Egypt and Jordan

through their permanent missions in Geneva and had sent reminder letters on 27 September

2017. The secretariat informed the Working Party that, since then, contact had been

established with the permanent missions of both countries to request their assistance in

obtaining feedback from their respective customs authorities, but that, so far, no such

feedback had been provided.

43. The representative of FIA/AIT informed the Working Party that over the last months

the situation in both countries had remained unchanged and expressed her regret that

despite all joint efforts of FIA/AIT, their affiliated associations and, lately, UNECE no

feedback or clarifications from either country had been obtained. She reconfirmed the

availability of FIA/AIT to facilitate discussions between customs authorities and

guaranteeing associations to address, and hopefully resolve, this situation within the legal

framework of the Convention. The Working Party requested the secretariat to extend an

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official invitation to the permanent missions of Egypt and Jordan to attend further

discussions of the matter at its next session.

X. Activities of other organizations and countries of interest to the Working Party (agenda item 8)

A. European Union

44. The Working Party was informed that there were no recent developments in the

European Union related to the activities of the Working Party which merited reporting.

B. Economic Cooperation Organization, Eurasian Economic Commission,

World Customs Organizations

45. Due to the absence of delegations from ECO, EEC and WCO at the session, no

information was provided.

XI. Other business (agenda item 9)

A. List of decisions

46. The Working Party reviewed the list of decisions without further comments and

requested the secretariat to continue this practice. The list of decisions is attached as Annex

II to the report.

B. Dates of the next sessions

47. The Working Party decided to conduct its 149th session from Tuesday 12 until

Thursday 14 June 2018 and the 150th session in the week of 15–19 October 2018, subject

to confirmation.

C. Restriction on the distribution of documents

48. The Working Party decided that there would not be any restrictions on the

distribution of documents issued in connection with its current session.

XII. Adoption of the report (agenda item 10)

49. In accordance with established practice, the Working Party adopted the report on its

148th session on the basis of a draft prepared by the secretariat.

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Annex I

[English only]

Statement by Mr. Cristian Serban, Deputy General, Associatia Româna Pentru Transporturi Rutiere Internationale (ARTRI)

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Annex II

List of decisions taken at the 148th session of the Working Party

Reference in

final report

(para.) Short description of decision Actor Deadline

7 Invitation letter to Chinese customs secretariat asap

8 Prepare comparative document TIR/RKC and WTO/TFA on the application of customs procedures in customs unions

Delegation of Ukraine

1 April 2018

8 Provide feedback to secretariat on proposals to amend Art. 20

Delegations 1 April 2018

9 Assess E.N. 0.8.3. to improve wording or conversion to comment

Delegations 1 April 2018

11 Prepare document on new Article 11, 4 bis secretariat 1 April 2018

18 Provide information on MoU and CA secretariat 1 April 2018

27 Submit comments to Annex 11 Delegations 1 April 2018

27 Prepare updated version of Annex 11 secretariat 1 April 2018

27 Prepare document on UN Financial Rules secretariat 1 April 2018

27 Prepare timeline for financing operational costs secretariat 1 April 2018

29 Provide comments/proposals authorized consignor Delegations 1 April 2018

30 Prepare document on subcontractors in various countries IRU 1 April 2018

35 Request TIRExB to study E.N. to Article 6, 2 bis (via AC.2)

secretariat asap

38 Convene 11th session of AC.3 in conjunction with the 152nd session of WP.30 (June 2019)

secretariat March 2019

39 Submit comments to new draft Rail Convention Delegations 1 April 2018

39 Rephrase title and substance of agenda item secretariat 12 March 2018

39 Report findings on draft Rail Convention to ITC Chair 21 February 2018

43 Invite missions Egypt and Jordan to 149th session of WP.30

secretariat asap